New Global Food Security Policy Was Announced by AVMA in Advance of World Veterinary Day 2018

American Veterinary Medical Association, or AVMA, was established in 1863 and it’s one of the largest and oldest veterinary medical organizations in the world. It has over 93,000 member veterinarians from all over the world and each one of them is engaged in a wide variety of professional activities and dedicated to the art and science of veterinary medicine.

The board of directors of the American Veterinary Medical Association held a meeting last April where they approved the association’s first global food security policy. The new policy was brought as an addition to the theme of World Veterinary Day 2018, which was ‘The role of the Veterinary Profession in Sustainable Development to improve livelihoods, food security and safety.’

Dr. Michael Topper, president of the AVMA, said that the key for a safe and abundant food supply around the globe have always been veterinarians. Hence, AVMA will aim in bringing together versatile groups from different areas of expertise which will try to establish partnerships of public and private stakeholders in order to achieve global food security.

The AVMA Committee on International Veterinary Affairs wrote the policy after the AVMA 2017 Global Food Security Summit. The new policy was also adopted by the AVMA Food Safety Advisory Committee. The AVMA Food Safety Advisory Committee shared a written statement in which they claim that veterinarians play a vital role in food security. They, as members of associations and individuals, through professional support and education play a huge role. Hence, veterinarians work close with smallholders and large-scale farmers and aim and work on good biosecurity, research, disease-eradication programs, public health interventions for food safety, and capacity building.

Moreover, Dr. Topper shared that this new policy uses the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) definition of Global Food Security.

World Veterinary Day 2018 reminds us that we have a role in ensuring that all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life,” said the president of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Both, the World Veterinary Association and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) coordinate the World Veterinary Day. This annual celebration promotes and highlights all the important contributions veterinarians make in order to improve animal health and welfare around the world.